From Online Streamer to Ideological Lightning Rod: The Rise of Hasan Piker

Hasan Piker calls it the bus driver test: “You get on a bus and you have a brief moment to describe whatever online drama unfolded to the bus driver before them turning to you and going, ‘Leave the fucking bus.’” Most online conversation, regardless of how intense, does not pass the test, he says – including an incident last weekend, when someone on a Dublin street asked to take a picture with Piker, then produced a picture of his dog and shouted “Free Kaya!” Forget the bus driver; trying to explain the importance of that specific event might well take the rest of this article.

Occupying the In-Between Space

Piker finds himself in this in-between space more and more these days. Until fairly recently, the thirty-four-year-old was known only to the digitally immersed, particularly Americans in their twenties and thirties, mostly thanks to his dominant presence on the streaming channel Twitch. But following the last presidential election, Piker has become an sought-after voice in “the real world” for his perspectives on the struggling political left, and especially that inordinately discussed demographic, young men.

A Favorite Hate Figure for the Political Right

Unsurprisingly, this also makes Piker a favorite hate figure of the political right. To his enemies there is a lot to dislike: his direct political views; his cultural background; his associations with left-wing politicians. But they also take issue with the fact that Piker – tall, muscular, fashionable and handsome – defies stereotypical lefty stereotypes. He has not been afraid his appearance in shirtless magazine photoshoots or social media posts.

“I’ll be honest, I had no clue that this is what I was going to be doing,” states Piker. “Like, if someone were to ask me, did you imagine that you’d become a Twitch streamer? I’d be like, what is Twitch?”

It’s early and he’s preparing to start his regular 11am show. He usually broadcasts live for seven to eight hours consecutively, talking off the cuff about current affairs, pop culture, his personal life, playing video games, reacting to memes and media clips, and interacting with the never-ending stream of messages from viewers.

Beginning at The Young Turks to Solo Streaming

Establishing himself on Twitch, a platform primarily for streaming video games, was a conscious decision, Piker explains. His media career started out with The Young Turks, the left-leaning online news network. His parents are Turkish immigrants, and he grew up between New Jersey and Istanbul before studying political science. He graduated to his own show on the network in 2016 but in 2018 he chose to go solo on Twitch, to counterbalance what he saw as dominantly rightwing, and often toxic views that infested the space.

“There’s a lot of ideological diversity among the gamers, amongst the developers, among the consumers, but sadly, the market for political expression in this hobby is so overwhelmingly dominated by the right,” he notes.

The Problem with the American Left

This is the fundamental issue with the American left in general, argues Piker: they’ve ceded so many cultural spaces to the right. “You absolutely have to promote your ideas … but they simply completely gave up on all notion of marketing or branding.”

Piker is consistently critical of recent administrations on his show, particularly on foreign policy, but he is not a loyal member of the major center-left party. His own politics are broadly social democratic and “empathy-first”, he explains. “My position is actually the normal position in most of the world.”

Firestorms and Criticism

One of the dangers of Piker’s type of relaxed, accessible commentary is that he’ll sometimes go too far, which gives his opponents fodder. He has been temporarily banned from Twitch multiple times for deemed offensive content. Most notoriously, in 2019, in the framework of a broader critique, he made a comment about a historic attack that was seized upon by conservative media outlets. Piker later expressed regret and said the language was inappropriate.

Similarly, Piker’s outspoken support for Palestinian rights and criticism of certain state policies have led to accusations of prejudice, which he denies. He has also been ridiculed for expressing praise for another major global power, after a trip there.

“I have no problem getting attacked by people on the right. I relish when my enemies hate me,” he states. “It is what it is.”

Real-World Repercussions

The hate increasingly threatens to spill offline, however. On one occasion, Piker was questioned by US border agents on his re-entry from travel abroad. They questioned him about his political opinions before releasing him. “I think they did it because they know who I am,” he said.

These levels of enmity help explain the “Free Kaya!” incident in Dublin. It originated from a Twitch stream where his dog, Kaya, made a noise suddenly. Online detractors swiftly concluded that Piker was harming the animal, igniting a meme-fueled controversy dubbed “the collar incident.” Even a prominent animal rights organization put out a statement. This led to the surprise encounter by a stranger in Dublin.

Piker took that encounter in his stride. Online, though, the encounter was edited from his live stream and disseminated with his response edited out. “They wanted to make it look like I was shocked,” he said.

The Divide Between Digital and Real Worlds

This highlights the difference between the offline and online worlds, he says: “It’s very difficult to maintain a very negative energy in the real world without coming across as hysterical and odd. Exchanges on the internet foster this environment where you can be as aggressive as you want.”

That Dublin encounter was fairly low stakes. In the US, he feels less safe. The fatal shooting of a right-wing commentator was a harrowing example of where this online hate can end up. Piker watched the event develop in real time on his stream.

Piker still do real-life streams in the US. “I can’t let fear dictate my life. I’ve gotten death threats for years,” he says. Toxic parasocial relationships are part of the territory, he accepts.

Looking Ahead and Staying Grounded

Having been prescient about the last election, how does Piker view the next few years? “The landscape shifts quite rapidly, but if you look at the avenues where there is some glimmer of hope, it’s the progressive candidates that are actually truly galvanising the public,” he says. He points to the progressive “left flank”.

“We have to lean into that, because I feel like it’s a matter of life or death at this point,” he continues. “So I will do anything in my power to try and avoid a worse alternative.”

The American left could arguably do with someone like Piker. But it seems unlikely as if Piker is interested in traditional political office. He makes periodic media appearances, but he’s not tempted further into traditional media, he says. “The audience is moving in my direction, and away from legacy publishers.”

And on top of that, he still finds it fulfilling: “I find a lot of emotional fulfilment in what I do.” As he’s talking, he’s got one eye on the clock. Another marathon live stream is about to begin, and he’s itching to get started.